Inside the Dreamlike Dystopia of Glorious Summer: SXSW Interview with Helena Ganjalyan & Bartosz Szpak on Fear, Freedom, and Filmmaking
Step inside the surreal world of Glorious Summer as directors Helena Ganjalyan and Bartosz Szpak speak with The Extra Mile at SXSW. Discover how their acting roots, a haunting Renaissance setting, and real-world tensions shaped this atmospheric film about fear, safety, and the human desire to feel it all.
TEM (The Extra Mile): What your background and how that influence the film?
Bartosz: Yeah. And the project itself originated as a theater play a couple of years ago. And then, yeah, it sort of evolved into this thing that it is right now. And yeah, and basically we started my background is also acting. I also finished film school as an actor. And yeah. And then we we got together. We started directing. We transitioned fully into into directing. I mean, not not fully, fully. Helena is also part of the cast of the film.
TEM : How exactly this concept came to life? Maybe you can explain a little bit of what the film is about for those who aren’t familiar with the premise?
Bartosz: So the basic premise of the film (3:52) is that these three women live in this renaissance palace and everything is taken care of. They get food. They get wellness affirmations all day. And it’s all sunny and safe, at least at the surface. And and then the question arises, is that and is that enough? And doesn’t like the real human nature, is there a need for like fuller experience of life and experiencing also the bad things and confronting them? So long story short, it’s I’d say it’s a film about like one of the themes is overcoming fear, overcoming anxiety and, you know, the fear of the unknown, something that’s behind the wall and, you know, daring yourself to cross that wall.
Helena: And for me, it was really important, like living last years in Poland was kind of kind of hard in terms of war that was happening next to us in Ukraine. So we sort of felt that, you know, that that there is this kind of a danger outside, let’s say outside, because it was right next to us. And with Glorious Summer, we kind of feel that tension as well, that, you know, they have this safe zone that is taking care of them. But then like the bad things happen next to them. And how can they live in that bubble, having all of that stuff going, going, you know, going at the same time next to them? So is it possible to kind of, you know, detach from that? Or are you also need to perceive it in a way?
Bartosz: And we’re not like we’re not saying if one is right or wrong, because like the system that the system within the world of Glorious Summer is a system that also has some like some legit answers, like, for example, you know, the overstimulation that we experience today, like the influx of all the bad information, like, we really are subjected to a lot of it. And so taking some of it away, to actually stay healthier is not necessarily a bad thing. It’s just that we try to explore where, like, where it goes wrong, if it’s taken to, to, you know, to extremes, and can turn into something that actually takes away your freedom, or your choice of what you want to experience, or know.
TEM :. I’m very curious, though, this film has so much atmosphere, you know, and it feels like a times like a hazy daydream. And it’s beautiful in that approach. And I love that you’ve set it where it’s set. And without giving too much away, why did you decide to set it, you know, in this hazy daydream Renaissance sort of an atmosphere, as opposed to, you know, something else, maybe something more crisp and modern?
Helena:We really wanted that film to take place in a, like, timeless, and, yeah, timeless moment, let’s say, that you’re not able to say if it’s, you know, past or if it’s future, or it’s right now. And our goal was, with all of our tools that we have, like costumes, set design, camera, and to kind of create a place that is, yeah, that is a bubble itself. And we wanted it to be really like full of textures, full of colors that are kind of, kind of drenched with the sun that is there. And what
Bartosz: And also, like, the palace itself is a ready-made location, like, our budget was tight. And we were looking for something that had this instant look. And most of its rooms, stuff that, you know, we just have to add a little set design and some furniture and other things to make it look good. And yeah, we were actually shooting a music video back there. And a couple of years ago, and yeah, then we sort of had this idea to use this location. So that’s, that’s the job of like using, you know, minimal,
Helena: it looks like a place you want to be like you want to go there and have your vacation there. And yeah, we wanted that place to be tempting for the viewer.
[Review by guest blogger Jurgen Sosa the Part Time Binger]